


The Theia Impact

by Original_Cypher



Series: The Sly Dog Chronicles: Vicissitudes of a human in a world that's... not. [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: M/M, mentions of others - Freeform, scientifictrufax
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-14
Updated: 2013-07-14
Packaged: 2017-12-20 05:35:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/883532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Original_Cypher/pseuds/Original_Cypher
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a sequel to "Oh, Darren, my Darren. You have the Kay to my heart.". You should have read it first or this won't make a lick of sense.</p><p>AU. It's a quiet day with part of the pack, months after comic con, and Derek learns that Stiles knows many things. He tells him how one character in the books found its name.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Theia Impact

There are many ways Stiles reminds Derek of a cat.

How he basks in a ray of sunlight, belly up, smile goofy and ridiculous. How he purrs and pushes in for more when Derek trails his fingers up his spine and into his hair. How he blinks slowly, secret glint in his eyes, when he's content. How he fits himself against Derek's body as he pleases, any time, any place, and the werewolf just craves more.

The latest display of feline grace is currently happening, as Stiles seems inclined to rejoin society. Derek can tell by the way he arches his spine over the back of his chair with a satisfied moan, stretching right up to the tip of his fingers, a full bodied wave of bliss. The writer only does that when he is about to take a break from writing. Before Stiles even pushes off the chair, Derek closes his book and sets it aside.

“I am so done for today.” Stiles whines, but  he's grinning. He picks up the open pack of licorice from behind his computer and dumps it on Scott's lap on his way to the couch.

“Oh, bro, I love you. You read my mind.”

“Or maybe I just know you too well.” Stiles says as he climbs over Derek and flops against his side.

Derek has found he likes having a sofa bed in his living room. It's rarely ever folded up anymore. He likes to lie down comfortably when he's reading, but that isn't something he wants to do secluded in his bedroom. He'd rather share lazy moments with his pack. Therefore, he is glad that he chose a ridiculously large convertible that fits several people comfortably.

“Hey.” Erica warns from where she's doing her toenails at the opposite edge of the mattress. Her hand, disturbed by Stiles' bouncy arrival, is holding the brush in the air.

“Hey, yourself.” Stiles says, then, ignoring the tongue she sticks at him, he claims Derek's lips in a soft kiss. “Hi.” Derek smiles back silently. “What are you guys watching?”

“Old CSI rerun. The one with Horacio. It's nearly over, though.” Isaac supplies.

“Miami.” Stiles deduces while staring into Derek's eyes. A pensive smile stretches his lips faintly.

“What?”

“Nothing.” Stiles touches their noses together and casts a glance at the tv.

“Lydia's texted back.” Scott informs the group. “Pack barbecue slash pool party tomorrow. Starting at four.” A beep announces another message while he's talking. He chuckles. “And yes, before we ask. It's mandatory.”

Derek groans. He knows exactly what popped into Stiles’ mind a second ago, judging by the glint in his eye. He can’t wait to see Derek try to act cool in Hawaiian swim trunks again. It’s his own fault, really, for giving in to Stiles’ spectacular puppy eyes and buying the damn things.

Boyd is grinning. “As far as I’m concerned, I’ve heard worse things than ‘mandatory fun’.”

Absently running his hand up and down the small of Stiles' back, Derek surveys the present members of his pack. Erica is settling back into her boyfriend's arms now that she's finished prettying her feet; Isaac and Scott sit side by side at the foot of the couch and they look moments away from a wrestling match over the tv remote.

Meanwhile, the soft look in Stiles' eyes has returned. “That must be some book.” He comments, watching Derek’s features.

He can't help it. Christian Jacq makes him travel. “It is. You'd probably enjoy it.”

Next to them, Boyd snorts quietly over Scott pouncing on Isaac.

Derek takes a moment to appreciate the situation.  A lazy Friday evening, with part of his pack with him. Stiles long and warm, stretched against his side, slotted comfortably under his arm, smiling at him.

“You know you make faces when you read?” Stiles' fingers graze his jaw, his lips. “You kind of... twitch into one every once in a while.”

So, _that_ 's what his expression's been about. “That’s rich, coming from you. You do know what you look like when you write, right?” The author will grin, grimace, look in pain or act out a feeling to the brink of tears to find the right emotion, the right wording.

“Oh, _I_ _know_.” Stiles beams at him. “I just don't think I'm that cute.”

Derek scoffs then softens. “You know your heartbeat changes too? Depending on what you’re writing?”

Stiles shifts against him. This is the kind of thing he finds fascinating, Derek knows. “No.”

“I can tell when you're struggling with a chapter. Or when the mood is sad. Or angry.” He lets his lips crook to the side. “I can tell when you're writing smut.” He jerks his chin towards the laptop sitting idle on the table. “So I know there's some real action in this one.” He chuckles and leans in to press his lips to the apple of Stiles' cheek, just to see if his blush tastes different. “I wonder if it's Kay and Darren.”

Scott makes a gagging noise.

Stiles grins, coy, and rubs a hand up Derek's stomach. “I don't know, D. It could be that Sean and Ivan finally pulled their heads out of their asses and jumped each other's bones.”

“What?!” Scott flies away from Isaac. The blue-eyed beta on his back, expression torn between amused and puzzled, where the brunette had him pinned by his wrists seconds prior. Erica cackles.

“It's okay, guys. Missing what's right in front of you. It happens to a lot of us.” Derek feels justified in mocking his betas. They have teased Stiles and him relentlessly for months after ComicCon.

The remote lays abandoned while Scott composes himself, so the tv runs on with the last channel ‘elected’ during the scuffle. On screen, 'And Next...' announces today's inevitable rerun. In the short preview, Dean and Castiel stare soulfully at each other while arguing over who is to die for the other this time. Speaking of long awaited hookups. “Hey.” Stiles taps Derek's chest with a grin. “If Destiel ever happens, it has to be to Closer, by Nine Inch Nails, playing in the Metallicar.”

“This is _our_ song.” Derek points out.

“Wow.” Isaac turns around to stare at them as Erica snickers. “... do I wanna know who lets who desecrate the other?”

Stiles smirks as a reply, Derek laughs.

“I refer you to Karren fanfiction.” Boyd muses. “And please, do not share your findings.”

Scott lets out an undignified noise. “I did not want to know you guys' mood music.”

Stiles sticks out his tongue. “Dude, I know how you jerk off. Deal with it.” Derek ponders where the line falls between benefits and drawbacks in knowing people intimately.

Isaac shakes his head and holds up a hand. “Wait, wait... how does it go? _I wanna fuck you like an animal_... and then what?”

“ _I wanna feel you from the inside._ ” Erica supplies.

“Nice.” Isaac winks at Stiles.

“You mean naughty.”

“Exactly.” Isaac's smirk is wide and predatory. “I like it on you.” Stiles chuckles.

Scott huffs and flops down, pouting and switches channels in retaliation.

Stiles turns back to his boyfriend. “ _You get me closer to god._ That totally fits Destiel, right?”

“Hm.” Derek brushes their lips together. “They can have Hinder's Lips Of An Angel. I'm keeping this one.”

“We can agree to disagree.”

“Or you guys could share.”

Boyd groans, covering his closed eyes with a hand. “Erica. I know you're picturing a Desterek orgie right now. Stop.”

Derek frowns. “A what?”

“Destiel. Sterek.”

Stiles eyes Derek and points at his chest.“... sterek?”

Boyd grins at him. “What? There can be Brangelina and Bennifer but not Sterek?”

“Shut up, Berica.”

Scott snickers.

“Go on, laugh while you can, Scisaac.”

Isaac doesn’t turn around, but waves a dismissive hand at the group. “Hey! Nothing to do with it, here. Leave me out of it.”

Scott gapes at him. “You'd leave me alone to face those... those...”

“Slashers?” Erica supplies, while the blond turns a smirk on his neighbor.

“Yes!”

Isaac’s grin turns wolfish as he leans in, closing in as if to kiss him Scott. The latter stares, wide eyed and jaw dropping slightly, as the blond holds lets his eyes drop to Scott’s lips, then bring them back up suggestively. “We’ll see,” he teases.

Everyone laughs as Scott blush up to his hairline while Isaac flops back against the couch, looking casual. Scott stares at him, face burning and looking scandalized, then he folds his arms on his chest and puts on an exaggerated pout. Isaac, tempted, glances sideways and chuckles at the sight. He reaches out and ruffles the brunette’s hair. Scott cracks a smile, muttering a quiet _‘Asshole.’_ that everybody picks up on and elbowing the blue-eyed wolf gently. Isaac bumps their shoulders together, small plea for forgiveness.

“I like that.” Stiles comments from where his head rests on his boyfriend’s chest.

 “What?” Derek teases. “Bert and Ernie over there?” A roll of licorice lands by his eye. Scott’s getting pretty good with his backwards aim.

Stiles picks up the candy and shoves it in his mouth. “That we've aged. But never really grew up.”

“You sound like Castle.” Boyd remarks, amused.

“Thank you, actually, I'll take that as a compliment.” The author shrugs. “I meant... We've changed. We have jobs, or student jobs. But we have _this_. _Pack_. We get silly and tease each other... we've stayed kids at heart.” He meets his lover’s eyes. “For some of us, it had to be relearned.”

Derek knows Stiles meant it mostly for him and Isaac, and he can see how the beta is touched when he looks over. Very present in his mind, however, is a quiet conversation he overheard recently, Scott telling Isaac how glad he was to see his best friend laugh and smile like he used to ‘before his mom’.

His heart lifts even higher when Isaac takes them all in and speaks honestly. “You guys, the others. This pack…. You’re the only family I need.”

The sentiment overwhelming Derek at this, at every member of the pack present turning to each other and echoing the word ‘family’, is indescribable. He knows they can tell how much it means to him. The painfully tight squeeze of Stiles’ hand on his confirms it. It’s a concept. The word you choose for it depends on how you grew up. Whether you call it ‘pack’ or ‘family’ doesn’t matter, they’re talking about the same thing. Derek’s found a place where he belongs. It’s even more precious because _they_ feel the same.

The fact that the pack isn’t complete, right this moment, is unimportant. Derek loves the absent members just the same. He doesn’t show it much, but they all know it. They saw through his detached facade pretty early on, and he hasn’t been able to keep how needy he truly is a secret for very long. – And if anybody had missed it, by Stiles’ second book, Darren’s gooey interior was spilling all over the pages. –

They all slip back into channel surfing, everybody actually invested in the choice eventually agrees on a beginning documentary on the early history of their solar system. Stiles lifts his head, pressing closer to claim Derek’s mouth in lazy kisses. Holding a contented sound in his chest, Derek responds in kind, wrapping a hand more securely behind Stiles' back as his boyfriend indolently licks into his mouth.

He can feel his wolf side purr and champ at the bit. He knows from experience that he and Stiles are having similar thoughts just now. They both love to be here, surrounded by pack, but in these moments Derek wishes he could just make a bubble appear around them and be suddenly shut the world off, provide them with instant privacy. Because the length of Stiles' warm body pressed against his side makes him want to whisper things that he keeps for the other man’s ears only. Because he wants to nuzzle his face into Stiles' neck and breathe, and mouth there until they both pass out. Because he is torn between the urge to close his thighs on the one Stiles’ slipped between his legs and tug his lover fully on top of him, and the desire to push back and straddle Stiles himself, pressing him down; and he knows that he can do neither of these very enticing things.

Stiles is feeling mischievous and Derek knows this speaks of _fun_ to come. And also possibly quite a lot of teasing while the pack is around. Which is cruel and merciless, because Derek is powerless not to react, and safe for a small number of humans who aren't even present, everybody can _all_ smell his reactions. It's neither alpha nor public behavior. 

He would be ashamed, if he wasn't so stupidly happy.

Stiles takes pity on him eventually. After grinding his hips into Derek’s side to convey exactly how much they feel the same, he gives one last nip to his boyfriend’s lower lip and settles back against his chest with a pleased sigh. He keeps his hand under Derek’s shirt, lightly stroking the stomach below, and focuses his attention on the tv.

Even with the proof right here for him to enjoy, Derek sometimes still can’t believe how one’s life can be turned upside down. And then for a second time. For a long time, it felt like betrayal to feel anything remotely enjoyable when his family was dead, or forget about his guilt for even a minute. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, this sentiment still lives on. But this is bliss. As long as they will have him, as long as Stiles will have him, he’ll give himself over entirely.

Scott looks over. “Hey, Stiles. Did you know there's an asteroid that hit earth called Theia?” Derek idly wonders if Scott is aware of how cute he looks petting Isaac's hair like that, or that he's even doing it. It brings the question of whether he was ever like that around Stiles before Stiles’ fans slapped some reality in his face.

“ _Yes_.” Stiles answers and it sounds like 'duh'. “That's where I got the name.”

Huh.

Derek ponders asking, but he gets distracted by the drumming of fingers on his hipbone. He narrows his eyes at the back of Stiles’ head. “You're tapping out the rhythm of Closer, aren't you?”

“I have no clue what you’re talking about.” Stiles ‘accidentally’ brushes his elbow over the bump of Derek’s waning erection. “None.”

 

@@@

 

Thinking back, now, he was dumb as a rock. Derek has re read the Chronicles, thought back over the years passed. Indeed – or as would Stiles say ‘duh’ – there it was in the pages and in his memories, kind of hard to miss now that he knew. Stiles had been loyal. His friend, his ally, his support. His pack. Time had birthed a co dependency that neither of them had anticipated. And as thick as he feels for missing the fact that the person he'd come to think of as his closest friend was in love with him, it's nothing like the way he feels about ignoring how he himself felt. He fell in love without noticing. Who does that?!

Granted, his experience of the sentiment wasn't vast. He knew family and pack. And then there was romantic love. His only prior approach to that domain consisted of Kate. And while Kate had made him feel warm and fuzzy and been titillating to his teenage self, she had also destroyed him. From the fire on, he had shut himself off as much as he could. From everything. Anything resembling romantic affection had been stamped down as BAD. WRONG. DANGEROUS. WEAKNESS.

This was exactly why Stiles snuck up on him. Because Stiles was the opposite of bad. A thorn in Derek’s side, yes. But it had always been clear as day that his intentions, his allegiances lay on the side of Good. He established himself as a pillar member of the pack and always felt _right_ in this position. His help, trust and faith in Derek had allowed the werewolf to trust himself again, made him feel like the ground had finally stopped moving under his feet. Made him feel safe.

In hindsight, Stiles was perfect for him. Falling in love without his knowledge was the only way he could have. It was the only way he'd let it happen.

Now, following the path of his fingertips on Stiles’ skin with his eyes, Derek weighs the blessing that Stiles’ stubbornness is and always was.

He plays connect the dots up his lover’s arm, slips and slides down the muscles of Stiles’ chest like a skier, traces whorls and twirls down his stomach, stroking his flat hand down over the jut of a hip.

Stiles sighs happily, his hand slipping from Derek’s hair to massage at his neck. He turns back from staring out the window and gives a tranquil smile. Stiles’ mind is busy with something, Derek can tell from how quickly his face relaxes into pensiveness. “What are you thinking about?” he asks, wondering if he should be interrupting.

If Stiles needs some time alone to be inside his head, he will usually let him know. Soon after those times, Stiles usually sits himself in front of his laptop and is unattainable for a few hours. It doesn’t seem to be the case, now, as Stiles refocuses, shifting slightly to face Derek more. “The chapter I’m writing these days. How I want it to end. How it should end. Trying to find a balance between the two.”

“Will you let me read it?”

Surprise flashes over the honey-colored eyes. “You wanna read the book before its final version?”

“If it's okay.” Derek lifts a shoulder. “I'm curious.”

Stiles shuffles to his side, biting his lip to fight a grin. “Are you gonna hound me to write because the suspense is killing you? Or pressure me into a direction?”

Derek shakes his head. “Nah. If I don't like something, I'll just dress you up as Kyle and make you act things out my way.”

Stiles is laughing when he hauls him into an embrace. Derek mouths at his neck playfully, rejoicing in the feel of their naked bodies brushing together so naturally, then pulls back to peck Stiles’ cupids bow. “Did you do a lot of thinking for our names?” When he sees the confusion on his lover’s face, he elaborates. “You know... Sean, Darren, Kyle...”

“Oh.” The author scratches his chest thoughtfully. “Well, obviously, like me, Kyle had to have an original nickname. So, I looked for that… But mostly no. I tried to stick with the first letters for us, just for fun. Or something that sounded similar, you know. Then I compared the names with the real people to see if they fit. You could have been called Damion.”

“I like Darren better.”

Stiles lets out a chuckle, then shrugs. “So did I. So… there your alter ego was named.” He flutters his hands about. “Then Carver for Erica because... duh. She enjoys having actual claws way too much. Vincent for Boyd, just to remind him _I_ know his first name and _he_ doesn't know mine.” Derek chuckles. “Jeremy for Jackson, Adam for Danny, Anette for Allison because you know, French… it all came pretty easily. Flowily… Can I say that?”

“I don’t know. You’re the writer.”

“I’ve decided that it’s a word. It’s a Stilinskism. I own it.” He nods importantly then snorts at himself. He stops the back and forth of his fingertips on Derek’s forearm to lace their hands together. “This is about Kate, isn't it?”

Derek knows Stiles wants to look into his eyes, but he can’t bring himself to glance up. “What Scott said… And then you said… Was there a reason behind choosing Theia for her?”

Silence meets his question. He knows Stiles is waiting for him to meet his gaze. Dammit, he shouldn’t still be ashamed at feeling this vulnerable. Not around Stiles. Still, he has to steel himself before he finally complies. The expression on Stiles’ face makes it all worse and worth it at the same time. He knows exactly how raw Derek feels right now, and it makes him happy that he looked up. Stiles’ smile is brilliant when he swoops down to slot their mouths together quickly. “You tell me.” He then shimmies down the bed on his back, pulling Derek so he fits more comfortably against his side. “Come on, D, it's story time.” Derek shakes his head in amusement and nuzzles Stiles shoulder until he finds the perfect fit. Stiles starts enunciating like a Discovery Channelvoiceover. “There was once – about four and a half billions of years ago – a very young planet named Earth. It evolved and spun around its star in a galaxy – the Milky Way – that looked little like it does now. Back then, everything was still forming and lots of debris were floating around. Giant boulders collided and coalesced to form planets. Space objects were sucked in by larger ones, and Juvenile Earth took hit after hit. Its surface was heated to a molten state by the repeated hammering assaults. Call it the teenage stage, you know, with all the acne.” Stiles gestures to his face with a grimace. Derek huffs a breathy laugh. “Earth grew in size, fed by the mass of the asteroids that melted into its substance. This is when Earth gained most of its volume, it reach nearly the size it is now. ”

“You sound like Bill Nye.” Derek whispers against Stiles' chest, watching his hand as he traces patters on Stiles skin with his nails. Stiles snorts. “Are you bullshitting me, though?” Derek asks as Stiles opens his mouth to carry on. “You just know that, how long ago it was?”

“Yes! Now, be quiet,” Stiles gives a resounding slap to one of Derek's butt cheeks. “Or I'll put you in the corner.”

“Ow. Okay. I'm quiet.” He assures, laughing.

Stiles drags a hand through raven hair and tugs long enough to press a kiss to Derek's forehead. Derek steals his lips for his own for a moment, and smiles, settling back. Satisfied that his audience is attentive and behaving, Stiles goes on. “With the incoming materials and its greater size – which meant that the surface was getting farther and farther away from the core – Earth slowly began to form a solid crust and a very hot, dusty atmosphere. Some scientists even speculate that life may have emerged at that point. By their estimate, it could have been. But then... Theia.” Stiles pauses to drag his teeth over his lower lip before he continues. “Theia was a neighboring planet, and with them both growing – Theia being about the size of Mars at that point – it started gravitating in Earth's orbital path. And they collided head on. _Hard_.” Derek stops tracing whirls on Stiles chest, splays his hand on the author’s stomach instead, wide and grounding. “Whatever was on Earth then was instantly eradicated in a gigantic event. Theia whacked into the side of Earth, ground into it, until the two planets melded, sending and explosion of debris and fire up in space. Earth's atmosphere was blasted away. Whatever remained of its surface after the collision liquefied once again. A large portion of Theia and Earth's mantles was ejected. Basically, Theia and Earth met, and everything went up in flames.” Derek swallows. Yup. Theia is an accurate pick **.** “The plume of debris spread into a large disk around Earth. Isn't it cool? For a while, Earth had _a ring_. But, then it did exactly what the rest of the rocks did around back then. Most of it plowed back down onto Earth. Yet, some of it remained and gathered to form a new object that decided to stick around in Earth's orbit.”

Derek's eyes widen. “This is what formed the moon?”

“Yup. This is why they named the planet Theia, when they pieced together what had happened. After the mother of the moon in Greek Mythology.” Derek starts curling his fingers and scratching at Stiles' belly, willing himself to swallow less thickly. “It took about a hundred fifty million years for Earth to stabilize and re-harden its crust. So, you'd think the Theia impact was just a horrible thing, but... it may be the reason Earth is capable of hosting life today.”

“How?” Derek asks, voice tainted with disbelief. He knows that as much as Stiles hates interruptions when he's in 'narrator' mode, he loves to have someone play active audience and interact.

“Well... You know what the moon does to you. But, do you know what it does for Earth?” Derek shakes his head faintly, cheek still resting on Stiles’ shoulder. “When it formed, it stabilized Earth's axis of rotation. Without it, the Earth would fall to gravitational tugs from other planets and be randomly tipping this way and that every once in a while. Chaotic, really.”

“So? I mean, how does it affect what happens on Earth?”

“Through this little thing called climate stability.” Stiles says learnedly. Not for the first time, Derek thinks he would make a fantastic school teacher, if he ever needs a fallback from being the new J.K. Rowling. “Without the moon, within hundreds of thousands of years, Earth would tilt and the tropics would suddenly be having polar climate, wiping out life each time around. Or at the very least, bring it back to square one of evolution and number.”

“Huh.”

“So, basically...” Stiles' hand slips is in Derek's hair again, and blue eyes look up to meet whisky-colored ones. “The Theia impact was a cataclysm of epic proportions. But in the end, it gave Earth the moon. Life. Stability. Without it, Earth wouldn't be what it is now. Or... _who_.”

Derek swallows, looking into Stiles expectant and anxious eyes. An apocalyptic event, that becomes a part of him, a part of who he is. Oddly, a part of his strength. He's sure some science loving fans have made the connection for Darren. Even without the moon, and how it relates so perfectly to Derek's nature, especially as a born werewolf, it's a strikingly good choice of name. Once again, he is left speechless by Stiles ability to explain Derek to himself.

He surges up, claiming his lover's mouth forcefully. Stiles seems to relax as the kiss goes on, slows to playful brushes of lips, whatever fear he had about Derek's reaction to the origin story dispelled. “Is the moon you?” Derek whispers, moments later.

Stiles runs his fingers along Derek’s cheeks. “Maybe I'm just one of the parts that made it up, and the whole of it is the pack. Or maybe it's you. Grown up you. The rage, the hatred turned into wisdom and control. Hell, I don't know.”

Derek laughs, then tips his head down to nip at Stiles shoulder. “You got something wrong, though.”

“What?”

“You said 'what the moon does to me'. It's 'to _us_ ', now.”

Stiles grins and looks down, a quiet little smile on his face. “I'm still kind of getting used to that part.”

**Author's Note:**

> There are two more parts to this series planned. I cannot give an ETA. But I'm committed to them happening. :D
> 
> I hope you liked this one!


End file.
